Sunset Aviation Rebrands, Relaunches as Solairus

As of tomorrow, charter/management company Sunset Aviation LLC officially becomes Solairus Aviation. “It’s not a launch as much as a rebranding by people who have been in this business for a long time,” said Solairus president and CEO Dan Drohan. Headquartered in Petaluma, Calif., Solairus has more than 40 aircraft under management, half of them on its charter certificate, and expects to receive approval for operating aircraft with 10 or more seats by the end of next month, according to Drohan. After starting Sunset Aviation Inc. in 1992, Drohan expanded the company before selling it to JetDirect Aviation in 2007. When JetDirect became embroiled in financial difficulties, it closed Sunset Aviation Inc. and Drohan launched a new Sunset Aviation LLC, receiving a new FAA Part 135 certificate on April 30. Drohan and the new Sunset were able to retain all 65 staffers who lost their jobs when JetDirect closed Sunset Inc., and the employee count has since grown to 140. “In the 17 years I had Sunset,” he said, “I have never seen this group so upbeat, motivated and with such high morale about what we’re trying to build.”